NORTHERN Ireland Hotels Federation recently hosted its annual Hotel Receptionist of the Year awards ceremony.
Held in the Killyhevlin Lakeside Hotel & Lodges almost 80 entrants from Northern Ireland’s top venues were competing for gold in the various categories at the gala event.
Commenting on the interest Ciaran O’Neill, President of NI Hotels Federation said: “It is great to see such enthusiasm for these awards. We had a record number of competition entries this year. The standard throughout the entire competition was particularly high with the judges commenting on the exceptional quality of the finalists.”
He continued: “It is a pleasure for the Northern Ireland Hotels Federation to recognise the important role of the receptionist, reflect on the exceptional talent that we have in Northern Ireland and reward those who ensure the success of our hotels. Within the tourism industry, people are an essential part of our hotel product – we simply cannot function without them! The receptionist role is multi-faceted. It includes welcoming guests, dealing with queries, managing complaints and imparting information on local attractions. Receptionists must have an excellent knowledge of not only their own hotel’s amenities but of attractions, sites and products in their local area. Every day they deal with a wide range of requests and many miscellaneous issues.”
Scooping the title of Hotel Receptionist of the Year 2017 was Laura Curran of Bishop’s Gate Hotel, Derry/Londonderry, while the accolade of Most Promising Hotel Receptionist of the Year 2017, supported by Net Affinity, was bestowed on Adam Sweeney, Waterfoot Hotel, Derry/Londonderry.
In the team category the title of Hotel Reception of the Year 2017, sponsored by Tourism Northern Ireland, went to Bushmills Inn, Bushmills.